The Queen of Rox, Roxanne Shante

This is a promotional flier advertising the young Roxanne Shante, labeled the Queen of Rox, which is tied to her name and song “Roxanne’s Revenge,” which dominated the radio in 1984.

Queens native Roxanne Shante (Lolita Shanté Gooden, b. 1969) was a prominent female battle rapper. With her hit song, “Roxanne’s Revenge,” she was known as one of the youngest to ever rock the mic. A skilled freestyle and battle rapper, there was nobody in the Queensbridge Houses she lived in that could beat her in a Rap battle. At the young age of 14, Roxanne Shante was approached by neighbor and producer Marlon “Marley Marl” Williams to rhyme on an “answer track” he was working. That song was the UTFO track called “Roxanne, Roxanne” which then turned into Roxanne’s rap “Roxanne’s Revenge” and went on to sell 250,000 copies. The song also ignited “The Roxanne Wars,” a series of raps that were responses to the hit song. Roxanne Shante was also a member of the Hip-Hop supergroup called The Juice Crew, which included Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, MC Shan, and Kool G Rap. She began to tour with the group and in 1985 released, “Round One, Roxanne Shante vs Sparky Dee,” which showcased her battle skills with local Bronx rapper with Sparky Dee. With a love for Rap starting at the age of eight Roxanne Shante is crowned as the godmother of Hip-Hop with her quick rhymes that influenced the future of women rappers.